World Charolais Congress

Participants at the World Charolais Congress 2012 hosted by the United Kingdom

Charolais people from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland joined forces to plan one of the largest World Congresses hosted. It was definitely the Charolais event of the year on the world scene. Although the weather was cool and sometimes unco-operative, the hosts more than made up for it in warm hospitality that just didn’t stop.

The Congress started with a spirited welcome social and supper south of London that saw any non-Charolais guests wondering what was happening. The first night of getting re-acquainted or introduced to people from around the world went late into the early hours of the morning.

Most of the days consisted of one tourist stop and one herd visit, all carefully selected to give us an overview of the United Kingdom. Hever Castle was first on the list and gave us an opportunity to get some English history through the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, tragic queen of King Henry VIII. Many will remember the fate of his six wives through the line, “Divorced, died, beheaded, divorced, died, survived.”

Jan and Sarah Boomaar’s Vexour Charolais herd is located just miles south of London. It is a beautiful farm with some excellent new barns for wintering and calving. There is a lot of history in this area and some local historians had artifacts on display that were of royalty back to the 1400s. This was the first of many rides on a hay rack to view the cattle, which were impressive in excellent grass paddocks.

Stratford upon Avon is famous as Shakespeare’s home and theatrical events it hosts. A free morning to walk off the long flight while taking in the attractions of the old city was enjoyed by all.

Peter and Sheelagh Donger’s Seawell herd, located a couple of hours north of London, is one of the long time quality operations in England. We first met Peter in Brazil in 2004 at the World Charolais

 Med and David Benson, England; Candace By, Canada; Kim and Ben Harmon, England; Jimmy Wilson, Scotland; Helena Lewis, Wales; Marton Bujdozo, Hungary; Betty Wilson, Scotland and Dai Lewis, Wales, share a palinka at the welcoming desk

 Hever Castle  Shakespeare’s birth place

Lunch at Vexour Charolais

Everyone on the tour was welcomed at Seawell Charolais with a glass of Pimm’s, a traditional English drink Wine labeled for the Congress was served at our meals Seawell pasture Congress and he is great to visit with as he speaks his mind and is a very good stockman and excellent farmer, growing some fabulous crops.

Our first herd visit in Wales was to Arwel and Mandy Owen’s Trafaldwyn herd. In addition to their display, there were a number of other Welsh breeders who brought cattle to give us a better cross section of cattle in this country. There were some donor females and some A.I. sires paraded for us to see.

Lunch was served in a local school where we were entertained by the students in traditional Welsh dance, choir and harpists. We were graced with music by the director, a very accomplished Welsh folk singer whose cds now span across continents.

The accommodations for the next two nights were in the beautiful little coastal city of Llandudno. The old seaside promenade was walked and enjoyed by many.

The next day the beautiful coastal pastures of Wil Owen’s Deunawd herd were toured. Wil has been very competitive in the steer and heifer show competitions and just recently added a purebred herd to his operation. It was interesting to see the extreme muscle they are breeding for in the steer shows. His commercial cow herd is Limousin and Belgium Blue based and Charolais are used as the terminal sire.

Again a number of area breeders brought some cattle to display. Since there wasn’t a show in Wales at this time, they gave everyone a chance to participate at the farm visits.

The Llechwedd Slate Mine tour with a guided tramway ride into the caverns of a retired mine was educational. The underground lake was a solitary sight of beauty. The life of the miners was dramatized well and left everyone looking at slate

roofs with a different sense of respect for the workers who spent their lives in the mines. Today, slate mines are all done from the surface and the lifestyle of miners is much different.

A Welsh themed evening was a treat for the ears of the participants. A very talented harpist and Welsh choir entertained us after dinner. For those who had the fortitude to continue late into the evening, more songs were enjoyed in the lounge as the Welshpool Auction staff and friends broke into song throughout the evening. We didn’t realize how singing was such a part of their heritage and in the past the miners had a choir for each mine.

Our last stop on our way out of Wales was at the Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwillantysligogogo ch station. This is the longest town name in Wales and a two page explaination of what it means and how to pronounce it was distributed throughout the buses. Only the bravest attempted it out loud and a few took a lesson from our hosts.

The ferry ride across to Dublin was a little rough, but many used the day as a chance to rest and get some sleep. From Dublin the buses drove north giving everyone the opportunity to catch a glimpse of the Irish countryside and its many shades of green.

The first morning in Enniskillen was full of options. The famous Belleek Potteries was one, and exploring the town another, but we chose the boat cruise along Lough Erne. The narrator on the cruise was entertaining and had the ability to make us laugh while sharing historical, political and local bits of interest.

We were fortunate to be able to attend the Northern Ireland National Charolais Show. This was a great opportunity to see cattle from many

Breeders took the opportunity to parade some animals in front of the crowd for better viewing

 Llandudno promenade along the Irish Sea in Wales

POST 41Y

LOUB 18X

Selling 23 Lots of Canada’s Best Charolais from these leading breeders: À vendre 23 Lots de ces principaux éleveurs:

FROM QUEBEC AND ONTARIO

Beach Valley Farms, Eric Regier, 613-732-0726 Winters Charolais, Bob & Lorraine Winters, 613-433-3204 Cornerview Charolais, Brian & Heather Coughlin, 613-646-9741 Hicks Charolais, Bryan Hicks 519-766-2816 Dubuc Charolais Senc, 819-225-4298 Ferme Alain Larouche, Alain Larouche, 418-718-7305 Claude Lemay, 819-539-7616 Ferme Louber Enr, Bernard & Lousie Begin, 418-387-7514 Ranch Ostiguy Charolais, Pierre Ostiguy, 450-469-4472 PEE VEE Charolais, Phil Hardy, 450-243-0249 Ronos, Steeve Poulin, 418-464-4321 M & L Cattle Company, Roger Maloney, 705-295-6439 Patton Charolais, Chester Patton, 519-925-5243 Ferme A.R.F. Champagne, Andre Champagne, 418-596-2404

FROM THE WEST

LOUB 225Y Gerrard Cattle Co., Dory & Janine Gerrard, 403-227-5632 Prairie Cove Charolais, Tim, Wanda & Tyler Bullick, 403-224-3341 Wilgenbusch Charolais, John & Brenda Wilgenbusch, 306-458-2688

FROM THE MARITIMES

Cornerstone Charolais, Ricky & Nancy Milton, 902-393-8699 LXL Charolais Farm, Louis & Benoite LeBlanc, 506-532-4028

gerrard roxanne 18p

Selling choice of 18 January and February ET heifer calves Vente choix du 18 Janvier et Février ET génisses

For Catalogues call/pour appeler Catalogues Sponsored by/parraine par

Sale manager/Gestionnaire de vente

Helge and Candace By • 306-584-7937 H cell 306-536-4261 • C cell 306-536-3374 charolaisbanner@gmail.com The Quebec Charolais Association and Ferme Louber Enr. 1630 Rg St-Martin, Ste-Marie, PQ G6E 3A8 Ph 418-387-7514 • Cell 418-389-7181 louberfarm@hotmail.com

One of the slate mine cavern displays Killadeas Blockford Dynamite Celtic Storm Irish Dancers

operations under one roof. No comments were given during the show by the judge, which was something the Canadians missed. The breeders in Northern Ireland are selecting for size and thickness, with their biggest animals the ones taken to the shows.

Visiting the Ulster-American Folk Park was an interesting historical stop. This museum featured a town and farms from the era of the potato famine, to a ship used for emmigration, to a new town in Pennsylvania where many of the people from this part of Ireland moved. The main building told the story through exhibits and life histories of actual people. The outdoor museum featured people in period costumes that were able to give us tidbits of information about the building and the lifestyle of the people who worked or lived there.

Stuart Bothwell’s Killadeas herd is where we were again treated to an excellent lunch and tour of a good herd of Charolais. The weather was nice and the lush pastures were a good backdrop to the quality purebred and commercial cows.

The Killyhevlin Hotel in Enniskillen was the site of an Irish themed night. Harpists entertained us during the social and Celtic Storm Irish Dancers followed the dinner. Audience members had the opportunity to join in with the dancers before the Knotty Pine String Band began playing for the remainder of the evening. Dancing was enjoyed by many and as is often the case at these events, Canadians led the way.

Traveling in four coaches makes its own logistical problems for people planning trips. This group had to be accommodated in different hotels sometimes for lodging and meals. Tours also normally cannot accommodate a group this large, so on June 18th, we split up and some of us started our day at Bushmills Irish Whiskey Distillery, while the other half of the entourage went to the Giant’s Causeway.

The Bushmills tour offered an education that assisted us in learning the differences between brands and different approaches in distilling malt drinks. Of course this stop ended in some tasting that gave us the opportunity to appreciate all the great things we were told about Bushmills Award Winning Whiskeys. Even those on our bus that aren’t or weren’t whiskey drinkers, appreciated the Hot Bushmills, and copies of the recipe were taken for future use. The gift shop was lighter after this stop as the bus got heavier with souvenirs.

The Giant’s Causeway is a special place on the earth and a trip to Northern Ireland would be incomplete without it. This natural pavement of huge rocks projecting into the Atlantic Ocean on Ireland’s north coast was formed about 60 million years ago. Volcanic eruptions followed by lava cooling formed a hard rock called basalt. When able to cool slowly and evenly, this type of lava forms columns with regular sides. Before this scientific explanation, a story about the legendary giant who built the Causeway was told for generations.

Legend tells of Finn MacCool wanting to do battle with a rival giant in Scotland, known as Benandonner. The two giants had never met, so Finn built enormous stepping stones across the sea so the Scottish giant could cross to Ireland to face the challenge. The story takes a humourous twist when Finn, seeing the great bulk of Benandonner approaching, flees home in fear and asks his wife, Oonagh, to hide him. Oonagh is said to have disguised Finn as a baby, and put him in a huge cradle. When Benandonner

Rowana Rudiger and Steve Nesbitt as the Irish leprechaun continued on page 44

CHAROLAIS NATIONAL SHOW andSALE TOUR Experience Quebec

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2

Arrive in Montreal. Or choose to fly to Toronto and take a scenic train to Montreal. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3 –Tour begins. Montreal Biodome – Four ecosystems are explored through re-creations of their natural habitats: a tropical forest, a Laurentian forest, the St. Lawrence marine environment and the polar regions. Olympic Park and Oympic Stadium – 165 metre high Montreal Tower with observatory at the top offers 80 km views of the Montreal region. A funicular cable system takes people to the top. Boat Ride – tour with beautiful views of the Montreal Skyline.

Montreal Botanical Chinese and Japanese Gardens

NHL Hockey Game – Montreal Canadiens vs Carolina Hurricanes pre-season game.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4

Old Montreal – Gas lamps, cobblestone street and 18th and 19th century buildings repurposed as chic boutique hotels exude Old World charm. Stroll through the narrow streets on the island in the St. Lawrence River where explorer Jacques Cartier and Samuel de Champlain landed in 1535 and 1611. Basilica of Notre-Dame is a Montreal landmark. The Governors Feast – in an Old Montreal restaurant. Visitors are the nobles to whom maidens and vassals serve meals, while other minions entertain during the 2-hour, 17th century bilingual feast in New France. Old Montreal Bonsecours Market – an impressive domed neoclassical mid-19th-century edifice, built as a public market, still draws shoppers, who come now to scour its upscale boutiques for items handmade by Canadian craftspeople. St. Catherine's Street comes alive at night with buskers, artists, sideshows and numerous nightclubs.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5

Leave Montreal to travel to Victoriaville to visit with Quebec breeders and tour the exhibition.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6

Expo Boeuf National Charolais Show and Sale.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7

Travel to Quebec City and spend the next two days exploring the history (Plains of Abraham, the Citadel, Place Royale…) and grandeur of this great city including a traditional French Canadian supper in the oldest restaurant in Canada.Wander the cobblestone streets, or climb aboard a horse-drawn carriage for a different perspective. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9 – Depart. Minimum number required. Commitments must be made by August 30th. For further information or a more detailed itinerary, contact:

Helge and Candace By H 306-584-7937 • C 306-536-4261 charolaisbanner@gmail.com

Charolais Banner • August 2012 43

Northern Ireland Show Ring Northern Ireland Supreme Charolais Bull

saw the size of the “infant”, he assumed the father must be gigantic indeed and fled home in terror, ripping up the Caseway in case he was followed. This is the reason the Giant’s Causeway exists in north Antrim, with similar columns at Fingal’s Cave on the Scottish island of Staffa to the north - the two surviving ends of the Causeway built by Finn MacCool.

Those of us going to the Giant’s Causeway later in the day were not blessed with good weather. Thank goodness for the rain ponchos in our registration packs! Fortunately, since the sun shining on us that day was quite damp, there were no tourists besides we brave and hardy Charolais people. We got a view and photos without hundreds of strangers in the background, and free rein to climb wherever we desired.

The warmth extended at Coolnaslee Charolais, Gilbert and Hazel Crawford and family was more than enough to remove the chill and charm our spirits. The cattle herd has been developed by buying the best sires they could, including the 55,000 gns ($90,000) Sportsman Columbo, and dominating the show ring with some powerful, big cattle.

Every detail was first class: the picturesque farm signs, the ice sculptured bull head, the abundance of food, Gilbert’s secret recipe punch, the terrific band, the Irish dancers… not one detail escaped the planners and we were treated royally – it was definitely world class.

Wendy & Lyle Bignell and Candace & Helge By doing some tasting at Bushmills Canadians attending the World Charolais Congress

As the events progressed, we found ourselves wondering what more could possibly await our delights, but every stop was different, well done and offered something new.

On June 19th, we departed Belfast by ferry to the Scottish borders. Alnwick Castle’s owners have developed the site into a major tourist attraction. Having parts of three Harry Potter movies filmed there doesn’t hurt the marketing plan, but they have invested in further development while honouring the history and artwork that goes along with such a historical property. Opening the State Rooms, their actual living quarters, to tourists is something not everyone would be willing to do.

The catering facility for events, restaurant, gift shop, café, various special children’s and adult activites are all available, but the investment in the Alnwick Gardens goes beyond the castle walls. Complete with a maze, a water fountain show, rose garden, etc., it makes for an interesting tourist stop.

We crossed back into Northern England to tour the Campbell’s Thrunton Charolais herd. This is one of the premier herds in the United Kingdom proven by its record eight Perth Bull Sale Supreme Champions and 15 times winning the group of three. The herd is also the largest with 400 head of Charolais cattle. A good working farm with Charolais now being worked by the third generation.

The Royal Highland Show is a

An energetic, Irish band entertained us during dinner at Gilbert & Hazel Crawford’s place

Parade to the buses led by the leprechaun, piper, drummer and our host Gilbert Crawford Coolnaslee welcome sign

Roast lamb at Coolnaslee Charolais

major event in Scotland and one we have always wanted to attend. The show cattle again are the biggest from the breeders and there was lots of power and growth in the show strings. The biggest bull I think I have ever seen was a six year old that was reportedly weighing 1,900 kgs (4,180 lbs.) and one mature show cow had to be over 3,000 lbs. These did not win the show but were interesting to see. David Bondfield from Australia was the judge of the female part of the show and a Scottish stockman sorted the males. There is also an all breeds Supreme class at the end of the week where each breed selects a bull and three females to compete. These are not necessarily the grand champions of each breed but animals that are uniform and represent the breed type.

While the men gathered around the showring in the rain, most of the women walked through the exhibits in and out of the shelters provided. The grounds are extensive and the exhibits included all the sorts of things you would expect to see at a stock show in Canada, plus more. There were more entertainment stages and way more sheep. Many Canadians commented on the different kinds of sheep they never knew existed.

The Charolais Society had a huge

Alnwick gardens

Cattle in the pasture at Thrunton Charolais Touring at Thurnton

Royal Highland Show Yearling heifer class

 Balthayock Charolais in Scotland  Balthayock tours

tent with a bar and food service. This tent was split in half and the Angus had the other half, but the food/bar ran between both. It was an efficient way of servicing the two groups. 

The Balthayock Charolais herd of Major David Walters, Lady Sara and son Nick was one of two herd visits the next day. The Major is very EBV driven and gave a good introduction of his program and goals. His herd has many of the top number animals in the British Charolais Society herdsire prospect list. After a good tour of the herd a great barbeque lamb and pork lunch was served. Large tents were erected and the hospitality was again great.

Murray and Fiona Lyle, Loganbar Charolais, are not strangers to a lot of the World Congress participants as they have attended many previous events. The opportunity to share their hospitality and culture was a pleasure to all. The steak supper with more salads than one could possibly sample was scrumptious. The entertainment featured a celtic band with Scottish country dancers leading the way. This dancing is similar to the pattern dancing of square dancing, but has no caller. The locals that knew the steps led the way and everyone else joined in and had some fun. The Lyles had done their homework and had bottles in the bar from the countries represented. Helge enjoyed toasting ‘Mid-summer’ with

the Scandinavians in the crowd with Aquivit. It was a welcoming touch I hope all appreciated.

June 23rd was the final day of the official World Congress tour, but due to all of the rain we had experienced, one farm tour had to be cancelled. There were still two options to fill the day, but people seemed to be able to find three or four things to do. Some people toured Stirling Castle. I went on the bus to Edinbugh with many others and toured the Edinburgh Castle. The oldest building in Edinburgh and the castle is St. Margaret’s Chapel and dates from the 12th century. Parts of the castle were constructed as late as the 15th and early 16th centuries. The city has many touristy shops and a large shopping mall. After this trip, the bus contained more luggage purchased to accommodate all of the souvenirs the congress goers had purchased on the trip.

Others in the group went back to the Royal Highland Show to see what they missed the first day or to attend the Charolais International AGM. The annual general meeting will be covered in a separate article.

Many of the Australians could be found glued to a television screen watching the Royal Ascott races. An undefeated Australian horse named Black Caviar was running and the excitement was contagious. Four of the attendees actually left the Congress a day early to be at the race. Black Caviar was victorious, which added to the jovial celebrations of the final evening.

The closing gala dinner at Stirling Castle was spectacular. A piper

 We were served this delish roast pig, along with roast lamb at Balthayock

Canada’s Hottest sires Canada’s Hottest sires

PRO-CHAR CAPTAIN MORGAN 8U

BW .6 WW 40 YW 79 M 3.7 TM 44 At Pro-Char 1st Annual Sale, 10 sons averaged $6,890 with high seller at $20,000.

Noticably one of the deepest, most sound footed bulls in the industry. TRI-N TIDAL WAVE 960W

SOS Crimson Tide 97S x TRI-N Easy Girl 95T (SDC Laredo) BW 1.1 WW 40 YW 103 M 23.3 TM 43

A perfect blend of our most predicable bloodlines. SILVERSTREAM PERFORMER P38

(Full French) Exclusif x Coat Lezard BW 2.9 WW 56 YW 90 M 10 TM 34 Total New Zealand outcross.

Sire of Canada’s high selling bull in 2012. Watch for sons in 2013.

Thank you CATTLELAC RANCH of Eddystone, MB, for purchasing a group of bred females. Good luck, Tyler. More bred and open females are for sale by private treaty.

TRI-N PREFIX PLD ET 54Y

Silverstream Performer x KCH Malibu (Baldridge Fasttrack) BW 24 WW 54 YW 94 M 20.4 TM 47 The high selling bull in Canada this spring, selling to Vikse Family farm for $37,000. Watch for him this fall in their show string. Ask about a full brother available for the 2013 breeding season.

A bull with incredible stride and ease of movement.

CATTLEMAN’S CLASSIC BULL SALE March 24, 2013 Virden, MB

tri-n CHarolais FarMs tri-n CHarolais FarMs

Merv, Joanne, Jesse & Brittni Nykoliation • Box 899, Lenore, MB 204-838-2107 • merv1@prairie.ca • www.trincharolais.com

“Success Depends on Quality”

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 The decorative walls inside Stirling Castle  The stabbing and cutting of the Haggis

played as we arrived and were led into the reception area. Stirling Castle has been the site of many battles and the inside of the castle shows some war wounds. Some of the statues on the castle walls are missing heads from such events. This is also the castle where Braveheart was filmed.

Dinner started with the piping in of the head table guests, followed by the piping in of the haggis. This is a time honoured tradition that still occurs during Scottish celebrations even in this country. After the haggis is placed at the table, a designated person, in this case a sponsoring auctioneer from United Auctions, speaks to it telling a tale that is quite lengthy. Near the end, the haggis is stabbed and then cut. It was served as our appetizer with neeps (turnips) and tatties (mashed potatoes). The meal progressed while a Gaelic choir performed for us. There were many presentations from various delegations thanking the host countries. We were once again piped out to a courtyard in the castle where a pipe and drum band played for us, then escorted us back to the buses.

The lounge at the hotel was busy that evening as many people were leaving the next day and were saying their goodbyes.

Post Tour

From only offering the post tour if there would be 45 people interested, to actually hosting two plus coaches, the response was enthusiastic.

 The closing gala attendees listen to a pipe and drum band in the Stirling Castle courtyard

We started with a visit to Pitlochry, a small Scottish town with many little shops geared towards tourist traffic. The enjoyable morning of meandering through the shops and streets was a break from the pace.

We continued to the Scottish Highlands and a tour at Balmoral Castle Estate. The famous country home of the Queen was one of the reasons many people decided to attend the post tour. Queen Victoria purchased the Estate in 1848 and it has been the Scottish home of the British Royal family every since. It covers just over 50,000 acres of heather clad hills, ancient Caledonian woodland and the River Dee is nearby.

The guided audio tour took us through the stables where displays depicted Her Majesty’s enjoyment of and association with horses. Horses could be seen in pastures beside the castle.

The gardens featured vegetables for the Royals to enjoy, and of course flowers for bouquets inside the castle and to remain in the garden.

The ballroom exhibited gowns belonging to Her Majesty the Queen as a special exhibition for the diamond jubilee. It also contained exhibits of a historical nature and video of the Royal family enjoying Balmoral.

The gift shop offered souvenirs from jigsaw puzzles to china and our luggage got heavier.

On Monday morning we made a quick visit to The Whisky Castle Shop and Highland Market. Tastings were poured by a proprietor that had a story to tell with every glass. It was entertaining and fun for even those who didn’t partake.

Roy and Kristy Milne & Sons’ Elgin herd was our first herd visit of the post tour. Elgin sponsors a young farmers group and they were on hand to welcome us with wine and open-faced smoked salmon appetizers as we got off the bus. A band of fiddlers had our toes tapping during a steak barbecue lunch and a dancer treated us to a Highland Fling. After lunch we had the opportunity to view the cattle and go through some exhibits brought in by local artisans and sponsors.

This herd had just shown the Reserve Grand Champion Bull at the Royal Highland Show and he was a part of the Charolais Supreme entry. Dad and three sons manage this quality herd of purebred and commercial cows that has produced some top selling bulls and will continue to in the future.

John and Raymond Irvine’s Inverlochy herd has had a year making Stirling Bull sale history in February by winning the overall supreme champion, along with others and then securing a new record Charolais herd average of 14,595 pounds on five bulls. We finished here with a great supper including roast beef and red deer for those that wanted a try and a

 Balmoral Castle  The Queen’s ponies

 A piper played a welcoming tune

fundraising weight guessing contest that involved the winners receiving some very nice Scotch.

The final tour morning started with pastries and coffee as we were welcomed to Blelack Farms by Neil Massie and his son Graeme. Neil has been to Canada many times in the past selecting genetics for both his Charolais and Angus herd. One of the most popular, easy calving A.I. sires in the U.K., Blelack Digger, was raised by the Massies and they had Grand Champion Angus bull at the Royal Highland show we had just attended.

Neil and Stuart Barclay’s Harestone herd was our second stop of the day, and we were greeted to lunch with a large display of John Deere equipmentas they have four major dealerships. A Scottish band also entertained us here at the conclusion of our herd tour. The Barclay’s have been successfully breeding Charolais for over 25 years and have spared no expense in improving their 100 head program. They also produce bulls for their 700 head suckler herd of commercial cows.

Jimmy and Betty Wilson’s Ugie herd was the last stop of the tour. Jimmy and Betty have been on quite a few conferences and many were looking forward to visiting their home. We were greeted by a piper and Scotch liqueur. The Charolais herd is going to be dispersed this fall, so many of the British society members were looking with great interest. Jimmy is a great stockman and has produced many herdbulls and breeder rams over his breeding career.

Supper was roast lamb and all of the trimmings while we were entertained musically. As soon as we finished eating the Scottish country dancing began and Jimmy’s and Betty’s two granddaughters did some Highland dancing to give us a break between the dances. The evening ended with Jimmy and his daughter leading us in song. A great way to end this very memorable 17 day adventure.

The ride back to motels by the Aberdeen airport was one of saying our goodbyes and already looking forward to seeing many of our Charolais friends again someday in the future – wherever in the world it may be.

 Many enjoyed the tales of the Scotch, as well as the taste  Cows and calves in pasture at Elgin Charolais

 Lochnend Apache at Inverlochy Charolais  Touring cows at Blelack Charolais

 John Deere tractors toured us at Harestone Charolais  A Blelack female

 A sample of the Harestone herd

 Scotch liqueur was our welcoming beverage

 Unique ribbon display spells the farm name  The Survivor’s that made it to the end of the tour at Ugie Charolais

 Appreciation gifts were presented to David and Caroline for a job well done! – Dai Lewis, World Congress Chairman; Hazel Craford, host and presenter; David Benson, British Charolais Society GM; Caroline Cree, Field Farm Tours Co-ordinator; Helena Lewis, presenter, Alasdair Houston, British Charolais Society Chairman

Erixon’s Spitfire 127T

In his 5th season here. Nice daughters and sons that are sought after. Sound with muscle and capacity. CE 35 BW 5.1 WW 45 YW 93 M 18.7 TM 41

CJC Big Sky X623 P

An outcross to our program this CJC Trademark H 45 x SSR Mr Spur 3328 bull’s first calves look promising. Co-owned with Serhienko Cattle Co. and Gerrard Cattle Co.

MXS Craftsman 910W

A home bred bull purchased by Hunter Charolais. He is sired by MXS Allegro and out of a great Whitehot daughter and maternal brother to MXS Vermillion 527R. CE 99 BW -.4 WW 35 YW 64 M 19.5 TM 37

We are also using:

Merit Crossroad 9747W

This exciting young sire is by RC True 791 Pld and is co-owned with Serhienko Cattle Co. BW 1.8 WW 44 YW 92 M 18.9 TM 41 SVY Northstar 153Y

Sparrows Landmark x SVY Starstruck 559R 2010 Agribition Supreme Champion What a predigree and what a bull Co-owned with Hunter Charolais & Serhienko Cattle Co. BW 1.7 WW 57 YW 100 M 23.5 TM 52

Sylvan & Karen Martens Box 85, Glenbush, SK S0M 0Z0 Tel: 306-342-2099

Sparrows Landmark 963W

Stop by and see the program anytime or look for our offering at the Sterling Collection Sale in December

BW 1.5 WW 66 YW 119 M 19.7 TM 53 and the Northern Alliance Bull Sale next March.

Charolais Banner • August 2012 59